Design

Costume designs

During the pre production of a film the production designers would have to design costumes of a certain era or with other aspects in order to portray the character. Especially if the film is oriented in the past lots of research has to be done.

In the film The Young Victoria, a film about Queen Victoria in her twenties getting married to Prince Albert, the designer, Patrice Vermette, certainly looked at and studied how the actual dress was.

Queen Victoria’s portrait by winterhalter

Vermette observed the orange blossom crown, the sapphire brooch that was given to Queen Victoria by Prince Albert, the V shaped gold detail in the bust and waist area and the lace and the colour white. With that research and information he was able to produce a dress inspired by Queen Victoria’s wedding dress.

Vermette’s dress gives a sense of movement due to the folds at the waist area going down looser and creating a romantic flow. The puffed sleve also shows movement through folds of the fabric. While the tight corset at the waist line balances out the dress since it gives it a nicer structure, and avoids the dress from moving to a side.

Versailles and more, 2008-2010. Queen victoria’s weding or why modern Brides wear white Available at: http://blog.catherinedelors.com/queen-victoria%E2%80%99s-wedding-or-why-modern-brides-wear-white/ (28/10/2013)

Madam Guillotine, 2013. Queen Victoria’s wedding dress. Available at: http://madameguillotine.org.uk/2013/02/10/queen-victorias-wedding-dress/ (28/10/2013)

The future of architecture

If one had to picture a building in their heads they probably picture a tall building with tough and stable walls, but the designs of architecture maybe heading to a new direction. Science and technology made lots of changes throughout the time they were explored, and maybe it is time to involve them to design in architecture as well.

The Dynamic Tower which is planned to be built in Dubai has these two elements involved in it. It uses technology since each floor is constantly yet slowly turns around on its axis detached from the other floors and science to use renewable sources.  Just imagine one day one would wake up with a view of the sea, and the next day a view of the landscape around, and the day after a different angle is in view.

The Culture Concept Circle, 2013. Fashion, is it more than a frock? Available at: http://www.thecultureconcept.com/circle/fashion-is-it-more-than-a-frock (28/10/2013)

Costume Design 

Designing clothes was always an interesting aspect for me, not the usual every day, casual clothing but the once that can be exaggerated, avant-garde and reflecting a mood, a character, a period…

One of my favorite costume designers is Colleen Atwood. With almost twenty years of costume designing experience, she can represent a character just by looking at what the actor is wearing.

“Costumes are the first impression that you have of the character before they open their mouth-it really does establish who they are.”- - Colleen Atwood.

In Snow White and the Huntsman, a film which Atwood was the costume designer of, the character of Charlize Theron, Queen Ravenna, is dressed in such a way that shows the character evolving throughout the film by having darker clothing as time goes by.

The shoulders of the wedding dress are made of parchment paper that was given a shape to resemble a skeleton cage. In my opinion the repetition of the parchment paper create subtle movement to the very stiff bustier.

Another film that Atwood was part of is Alice in Wonderland, although the film has an animation element Atwood designed the costumes of Alice before falling into the rabbit hole, and other costumes such as the armor of  Stayne- Knave of  Hearths because the animated version of his costume was slightly odd so a costume was made and then edited in the animation.

A fashion designer Hussein Chalayan, back in 2007, combined fashion design and technology, resulting in breathe taking designs that change shape some way or another. The Victorian inspired clothing takes a shift to a different direction and totally jumps into a different era, the era of technology.  Since movement is the theme I am going to represent in my visual product I became very interested in the technology behind the designs. Different designs had a package inside with batteries, controlling chips and a motor which is smaller than a pencil! It was then activated by a pulley which was connected to the monofilament wire and gave energy to the tubes, giving supply to each cable to do its function. The technician for this project was Rob Edkins.

(The following video contains nudity).

Designing clothes can lead to various outcomes, for my visual product I am being inspired to do a costume/ wedding dress with technological aspects incorporated within resulting in movement of the design itself.

Hussein Chalayan,[ online] Available at: http://husseinchalayan.com/#/home/ [15/12/2013]

Colleen Atwood Costume designer for ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ [online] Available at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d-Oi6Adsjs [16/12/2013]

Transformer clothing. [online] Available at: http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp?NewsNum=925 [16/12/2013]

Cothing the Mad Hatter. [online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADTakWsxe2U {16/12/2013]